Rumiyah (magazine)

Rumiyah (Arabic: رومية‎, romanized: Rome) was an online magazine used by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) for propaganda and recruitment. It was first published in September 2016 and is released in several languages, including English, French, German, Russian, Indonesian and Uyghur.[1][2]

Rumiyah

Rumiyah (Issue 1)
Categories	Online magazine for propaganda
Frequency	approximately monthly
Founder	Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
Year founded	2016
First issue	September 5, 2016
Final issue	September 9, 2017
Country	Syria (under Islamic State)
Based in	Raqqa
Language	Arabic, Bosnian, English, German, French, Indonesian, Turkish, Uyghur, Urdu

The magazine replaces Dabiq, Dar al-Islam and other magazines that were released until mid-2016. Analysts attributed the change of name partly to the imminent loss of the town of Dabiq to a Turkish-led military offensive, which occurred in October 2016.[3][4][5][6]

The name Rumiyah (Rome) is a reference to a hadith in which Muhammed said that Muslims would conquer both Constantinople and Rome in that order.[7][8]

Like Dabiq, each issue opens with a quote attributed to Abu Hamza al-Muhajir: "O muwahhidin, rejoice, for by Allah, we will not rest from our jihad except beneath the olive trees of Rumiyah (Rome)."[4]

The first issue was released after the death of ISIL's spokesman, Abu Mohammad al-Adnani, who was featured heavily in the magazine.[1] In October 2016, Islamic State released the second edition of the magazine in which it justified attacks against non-Muslims, including detailed descriptions of how to carry out knife attacks on smaller groups of people.

In October 2016, Rumiyah advised followers to carry out stabbing attacks and argued that jihadists throughout Muslim history have "struck the necks of the kuffar" (unbelievers) in the name of Allah with "swords, severing limbs and piercing the fleshy meat of those who opposed Islam". The magazine advised its readers that knives are easy to obtain and to hide and that they make good, deadly weapons where Muslims might be regarded with suspicion.[8]

Issues

Issue	Date (Hijri)	Date (Gregorian)	Pages	Publication frequency
1	Dhul-Hijjah 1437	5 September 2016	38
2	Muharram 1438	4 October 2016	38	29
3	Shawwal 1438	11 November 2016	46	38
4	Rabi al-Awwal 1438	7 December 2016	40	26
5	Rabi al-Akhir 1438	6 January 2017	44	31
6	Jumada al-awwal 1438	4 February 2017	44	29
7	Jumada al-akhirah 1438	7 March 2017	38	31
8	Rajab 1438	4 April 2017	48	28
9	Sha'ban 1438	4 May 2017	58	43
10	Ramadan 1438	17 June 2017	46	31
11	Shawwal 1438	13 July 2017	60	26
12	Dhu al-Qidah 1438	6 August 2017	46	26
13	Dhul-Hijjah 1438	9 September 2017	44	34

See also

• Dar al-Islam (magazine)
• Konstantiniyye (magazine)

References

1. "In New Magazine 'Rumiyah,' IS Calls for Lone-Wolf Attacks in Australia, West". SITE Intelligence Group. 5 September 2016. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
2. McKernan, Bethan (6 September 2016). "Isis' new magazine Rumiyah shows the terror group is 'struggling to adjust to losses'". The Independent. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
3. Wright, Robin (2 December 2016). "After the Islamic State". The New Yorker. Condé Nast. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
4. Joscelyn, Thomas (17 October 2016). "Town of Dabiq falls to Turkish-backed forces". The Long War Journal. Public Multimedia Inc. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
5. Sengupta, Kim (19 December 2016). "Isis indoctrinating children to plan attacks on Big Ben, Eiffel Tower and Statue of Liberty". The Independent. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
6. Gambhir, Harleen (December 2016). "The Virtual Caliphate: ISIS'S Information Warfare" (PDF). Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
7. Weiss, Michael (9 August 2016). "An ISIS Plot to Blow Up Notre Dame Cathedral—and Rule the World?". The Daily Beast. The Daily Beast Company LLC. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
8. Wright, Robin (26 November 2016). "The Hand of ISIS at Ohio State". The New Yorker. Condé Nast. Retrieved 4 April 2017.